Manually Operated Propelling Device

ABSTRACT

A propelling device includes a driving unit disposed in a housing. The driving unit includes first and second bevel gears connected coaxially and respectively to upper and lower ends of a vertical driving shaft, a third bevel gear disposed on and co-rotatable with a transverse driving shaft and meshing with the first bevel gear, and a fourth bevel gear connected fixedly and coaxially to a front end of a longitudinal driving shaft and meshing with the second bevel gear. An impeller is disposed on a rear end of the longitudinal driving shaft extending outside the housing, and is co-rotatable with the longitudinal driving shaft. Two operating crank members are connected fixedly and respectively to opposite ends of the transverse driving shaft, and are co-rotatable with the transverse driving shaft.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority of Chinese Application No. 200720139145.5, filed on Sep. 5, 2007.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to a propelling device, more particularly to a manually operated propelling device.

2. Description of the Related Art

A conventional propelling device utilizes a battery as a power source to drive a motor for driving rotation of an impeller, whereas another conventional propelling device utilizes a diesel engine to drive rotation of an impeller.

In the abovementioned conventional propelling devices, it is necessary to ensure a sufficient supply of power source, such as the amount of electrical energy or diesel fuel, during operation, thereby resulting in inconvenience during use. On the other hand, if a non-rechargeable battery supplies electrical energy, replacement of the battery is required when battery power is exhausted. Hence, the replaced battery can be harmful to the environment.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a manually operated propelling device that can overcome the aforesaid drawbacks of the prior art.

According to the present invention, a propelling device comprises:

a housing;

a driving unit disposed in the housing and including

-   -   a vertical driving shaft member extending in a vertical         direction and including a vertical driving shaft, and first and         second bevel gears connected coaxially and respectively to upper         and lower ends of the vertical driving shaft,     -   a transverse driving shaft member including a horizontal         transverse driving shaft extending in a transverse direction         perpendicular to the vertical direction and having opposite ends         that extend outwardly of the housing, and a third bevel gear         disposed on and co-rotatable with the transverse driving shaft,         and meshing with the first bevel gear, and     -   a longitudinal driving shaft member including a longitudinal         driving shaft extending in a longitudinal direction         perpendicular to the vertical and transverse directions and         having opposite front and rear ends, and a fourth bevel gear         connected fixedly and coaxially to the front end of the         longitudinal driving shaft and meshing with the second bevel         gear, the rear end of the longitudinal driving shaft extending         outwardly of the housing;

an impeller disposed on the rear end of the longitudinal driving shaft and co-rotatable with the longitudinal driving shaft; and

two operating crank members connected fixedly and respectively to the opposite ends of the transverse driving shaft, and co-rotatable with the transverse driving shaft.

The operating crank members are manually operable so as to rotate about the transverse driving shaft such that the transverse driving shaft and the third bevel gear are co-rotatable with the operating crank members. The vertical driving shaft member is driven to rotate about an axis of the vertical driving shaft as a result of rotation of the third bevel gear. The longitudinal driving shaft member is driven to rotate about an axis of the longitudinal driving shaft as a result of rotation of the second bevel gear, thereby driving rotation of the impeller.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the preferred embodiment of a propelling device according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing the preferred embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a perspective, partly cut away view showing the preferred embodiment; and

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary schematic sectional view showing the preferred embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, the preferred embodiment of a propelling device 1 according to the present invention is shown to include a housing 11, a driving unit, an impeller 17, and two operating crank members 16. In this embodiment, the propelling device 1 is adapted for use with a floating member 2, such as an inflatable boat, as shown in FIG. 1.

In this embodiment, the housing 11 is mounted on the floating member 2. The housing 11 includes opposite upper and lower housing parts 111, 112 complementary to each other, opposite lateral housing parts 113 complementary to each other, a positioning sleeve 114 and a positioning ring 115. The upper and lower housing parts 111, 112 are assembled to form a frontwardly extending head portion of the housing 11. An assembly of the lateral housing parts 113 forms a vertical intermediate portion of the housing 11 adapted to extend through the floating member 2 and connected detachably to the head portion at a top end thereof, and a horizontally and rearwardly extending bottom portion of the housing 11 adapted to be disposed outside the floating member 2 and connected integrally to the intermediate portion. The positioning sleeve 114 and the positioning ring 115 are sleeved on the vertical intermediate portion so as to position the lateral housing parts 113 relative to each other.

The driving unit is disposed in the housing 11, and includes a vertical driving shaft member 12, a transverse driving shaft member 13, and a longitudinal driving shaft member 14.

The vertical driving shaft member 12 extends in a vertical direction (Z), and includes a vertical driving shaft 121, and first and second bevel gears 122, 123. The vertical driving shaft 121 has upper and lower ends 1211, 1212. The first and second bevel gears 122, 123 are connected coaxially and respectively to the upper and lower ends 1211, 1212 of the vertical driving shaft 121.

The transverse driving shaft member 13 includes a horizontal transverse driving shaft 131 and a third bevel gear 132. The transverse driving shaft 131 extends in a transverse direction (X) perpendicular to the vertical direction (Z), and has opposite ends 1311 (only one is shown in FIG. 1) that extend outwardly of the head portion of the housing 11. The third bevel gear 132 is disposed on and is co-rotatable with the transverse driving shaft 131, and meshes with the first bevel gear 122, as shown in FIG. 3.

The longitudinal driving shaft member 14 includes a longitudinal driving shaft 141 and a fourth bevel gear 142. The longitudinal driving shaft 141 extends in a longitudinal direction (Y) perpendicular to the vertical and transverse directions (Z, X), and has opposite front and rear ends 1411, 1412 in the longitudinal direction (Y). The fourth bevel gear 142 is connected fixedly and coaxially to the front end 1411 of the longitudinal driving shaft 141, and meshes with the second bevel gear 123, as shown in FIG. 3. The rear end 1412 of the longitudinal driving shaft 141 extends outwardly of the bottom portion of the housing 11, as shown in FIG. 4.

The impeller 17 is disposed on the rear end 1412 of the longitudinal driving shaft 141, and is co-rotatable with the longitudinal driving shaft 141.

The operating crank members 16 are connected fixedly and respectively to the opposite ends 1311 of the transverse driving shaft 131, and are co-rotatable with the transverse driving shaft 131. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, each operating crank member 16 is L-shaped, and includes a crank 161 having one end 1611 connected fixedly to a corresponding one of the ends 1311 of the transverse driving shaft 131, a crank pin 162 connected fixedly to the other end 1612 of the crank 161, and a grip element 163 sleeved rotatably on the crank pin 162.

The propelling device 1 further includes a screen guard 15 connected to the housing 11 for enclosing the impeller 17 therein and for allowing flow of fluid therethrough. In this embodiment, the screen guard 15 includes a circular screen disc 151 mounted fixedly on the bottom portion of the housing 11, and a screen cover 152 connected detachably to the screen disc 151.

In use, the operating crank members 16 are manually operable so as to rotate about the transverse driving shaft 131 such that the transverse driving shaft 131 and the third bevel gear 132 are co-rotatable with the operating crank members 16. The vertical driving shaft member 12 is driven to rotate about an axis of the vertical driving shaft 121 as a result of rotation of the third bevel gear 132. The longitudinal driving shaft member 14 is driven to rotate about an axis of the longitudinal driving shaft 141 as a result of rotation of the second bevel gear 123, thereby driving rotation of the impeller 17.

In sum, the propelling device 1 of this invention is manually operable without requirement for electrical energy or diesel fuel, thereby avoiding harm to the environment. Furthermore, by appropriately designing a gear ratio of the first and third bevel gears 122, 132, and a gear ratio of the second and fourth bevel gears 123, 142, the propelling device 1 can serve as an exercise device.

While the present invention has been described in connection with what is considered the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is understood that this invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiment but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements. 

1. A propelling device comprising: a housing; a driving unit disposed in said housing and including a vertical driving shaft member extending in a vertical direction and including a vertical driving shaft, and first and second bevel gears connected coaxially and respectively to upper and lower ends of said vertical driving shaft, a transverse driving shaft member including a horizontal transverse driving shaft extending in a transverse direction perpendicular to the vertical direction and having opposite ends that extend outwardly of said housing, and a third bevel gear disposed on and co-rotatable with said transverse driving shaft, and meshing with said first bevel gear, and a longitudinal driving shaft member including a longitudinal driving shaft extending in a longitudinal direction perpendicular to the vertical and transverse directions and having opposite front and rear ends, and a fourth bevel gear connected fixedly and coaxially to said front end of said longitudinal driving shaft and meshing with said second bevel gear, said rear end of said longitudinal driving shaft extending outwardly of said housing; an impeller disposed on said rear end of said longitudinal driving shaft and co-rotatable with said longitudinal driving shaft; and two operating crank members connected fixedly and respectively to said opposite ends of said transverse driving shaft, and co-rotatable with said transverse driving shaft; whereby, said operating crank members are manually operable so as to rotate about said transverse driving shaft such that said transverse driving shaft and said third bevel gear are co-rotatable with said operating crank members, said vertical driving shaft member being driven to rotate about an axis of said vertical driving shaft as a result of rotation of said third bevel gear, said longitudinal driving shaft member being driven to rotate about an axis of said longitudinal driving shaft as a result of rotation of said second bevel gear, thereby driving rotation of said impeller.
 2. The propelling device as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of said operating crank members is L-shaped, and includes a crank having one end connected fixedly to a corresponding one of said ends of said transverse driving shaft, a crank pin connected fixedly to the other end of said crank, and a grip element sleeved rotatably on said crank pin.
 3. The propelling device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a screen guard connected to said housing for enclosing said impeller therein and for allowing flow of fluid therethrough. 